An Ohio businessman, who voted for Donald Trump himself, has been targeted with death threats by white supremacists for defending his Haitian workers.
Jamie McGregor owns McGregor Metals in Springfield, Ohio, a shop that makes car, truck and tractor parts. A few years ago, he began struggling to fill openings at his company for forklift drivers and quality inspectors, which is when he began hiring Haitians who recently moved to the town, as reported by the New York Times.
But following the presidential debate in September, McGregor found himself in the middle of a false rumor spread by Trump and his running mate JD Vance that Haitian immigrants were eating pets.
McGregor, whose family has lived in Springfield for five generations, publicly praised his Haitian workers for their hard work. "They come to work every day. They don't cause drama. They're on time," he told the New York Times in a previous September interview. He added on PBS News Hour the next week that they were drug-free. "I wish I had 30 more," he told the outlet.
Suddenly, McGregor, his family and his business became a target of white supremacists and neo-Nazis. In the threatening phone calls, emails and letters he was sent, people accused McGregor of "importing Third World savages who eat animals," and said it would be "justified" if McGregor was shot in the head.
McGregor, who has voted for Trump twice, employs fewer Haitians than other companies in the area, but none have issued public statements of support like him. In response to the backlash, McGregor has had to buy a gun, fearing for his family's safety.
"I have struggled with the fact that now we're going to have firearms in our house — like, what the hell?" McGregor told NYT. "And now we're taking classes, we're going to shooting ranges, we're being fitted for handguns."
The businessman also shared that he was visited by the FBI Sept. 12 after they determined that some of the threats made had plausibility. He said they also sat his family down to talk about safety protocols, such as varying driving routes and opening mail with gloves or tongs.
McGregor, who noted that he would not vote for Trump again, told NYT, "I can't imagine living my whole life like this. You know, it's got to end. It's got to stop — hopefully after the election.''
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